Riding the long, dusty trail through 50s Westerns.

Happy Birthday, Dan Duryea.

Let’s all remember Dan Duryea on his birthday. Here he is (as Waco Johnnie Dean) with Shelley Winters in Winchester ’73 (1950), one of the best Westerns of the 50s. Today would be a good day to pay your respects at the wonderful web site Dan Duryea Central.

Duryea was only 61 when he passed away, but he managed to squeeze a lot of terrific movies into those years. (Of late, I’ve become weirdly enamored of his odd performance in 1957’s Night Passage.)

Duryea (from a Hedda Hopper interview): “I thought the meaner I presented myself, the tougher I was with women, slapping them around in well produced films where evil and death seem to lurk in every nightmare alley and behind every venetian blind in every seedy apartment, I could find a market for my screen characters.”

Will queue up “Night Passage” tonight.
Dan Duryea is flat-out amazing. Was still a convincing bad guy in 1964’s “Taggart” (where he yet again proved he could make anything not just watchable but enjoyable). Also great in “Ride Clear of Diablo” with Audie Murphy and Anthony Mann’s “Thunder Bay”, which is pretty much a Western even though it’s set on an oil rig. And let’s not even start on his great film noir roles.
Always wanted to see an episode or two of “China Smith”, his 1952 TV show. The IMDB blurb makes it sound insanely cool:
Con artist and private eye China Smith works out of a bar in Singapore, roaming Asia in search of beautiful women (who like his tough style) and quick money. His nemeses are the friendly British Inspector and the scheming “empress.”

Hi,
I don’t think we got “China Smith” in UK but in 1954 Dan made a Film called “World For Ransom” which was a spin off from “China Smith” but with the character names changed. I recall seeing it some years back on BBC TV and it was pretty good for a low budget thriller – mainly because of Dan – he was always worth the price of the ticket.

“World for Ransom” is excellent–the second film of director Robert Aldrich. Yes, it’s a low-budget thriller but very distinctive. Duryea is the hero, kind of a flawed romantic character and he was just as great. He really could do his sympathetic roles as well as his villains, though I guess there are fare fewer of them in his filmography.

Aldrich was also directly involved with “China Smith”–I believe he directed quite a bit of it and maybe was a producer on it as well. I remember the show from when I was young, not in any specifics but because that’s probably where I first took such a strong liking to Dan Duryea. As played by Duryea, China Smith seemed like a very cool character before we even knew the word “cool.” I don’t think I’d seen any of his movies then, though some of them were coming along soon for me. By the time I saw “Winchester ’73” on rerelease (after all the other Mann/Stewart Westerns, which I’d seen on first release) Duryea was a favorite and I was waiting expectantly for his very late entrance in the film–and anyone who’s seen it will know that he didn’t disappoint coming in that doorway the way he did, one of his most memorable moments.

Talk of Duryea has motivated me to see “Flight of the Phoenix” again, a movie which reunited him with Aldrich near the end of his career, and with Stewart as well. Recording this off TCM today and will watch it tonight. This is another one in which Duryea is not a bad guy, an interesting character in a strong supporting cast and of course he’s excellent.

My Dad always used to like Dan too, anytime I’d show him a film noir w/Duryea he’d chuckle and say his name, “he’s good”. One of my favorite Dan movies is “Bounty Killer” he starts out an innocent babe in the woods to the Western ways but by the end of the movie he’s a ruthless killer. All while not really noticing the change in himself. This was a movie filled with great Western movie actors, my personal favorite Rod Cameron (I wish his part had been bigger), Bob Steele, Buster Crabbe, and even Fuzzy Knight is Dan’s sidekick, for a little while anyway. Dan was also very funny in a Jack Benny Show where he spoofs his own tough guy image. Dan made any movie he appeared in more interesting just by his own unique personality and oddly weird presense.

Dan is so thoroughly nasty in Woman in the Window and Scarlet Street. He does it so well!
What a change for him in Flight of the Phoenix, a mild, bespectacled character , not the smiling villain we know and love. Just showed he was a fine actor whom Hollywood of course typecast.

I’m making this a Dan Duryea double feature night. I just saw “Ride Clear of Diablo”, Duryea was one happy bad guy in this, I think he spent more time laughing than talking. I like how he turns good guy after not being able to help liking Audie Murphy’s character. I was also surprised to see, or more precisely, hear James Griffith at the very end of the movie, in what amounted to be a cameo appearance, he’s only there 30 or 40 seconds, but his voice is unforgettable and knew it must be him even with only a side and back view. It’s always good to see Jack Elam in a movie too, he sure was skinny back in the ’50’s. I am more familiar with him from his later days in Duke and Gunsmoke appearances in the ’60’s and ’70’s when he sported a gray big beard. It’s also interesting that Dan’s character in both films (Ride Clear & Night Passage) is named Whitey, though with different last names.

Just saw the 2nd of my Dan Duryea & Audie Murphy westerns, Night Passage. It was mainly a Jimmy Stewart movie, and as always he was quite good, but I found the movie as a whole less enjoyable as compared to “Ride Clear of Diablo”. This movie had a darker and more somber tone than “Ride Clear…”. Not many people in NIght Passage had a laugh or seemed to be enjoying themselves, even Dan only managed a brief chuckle in between his constant snarling at Audie. I didn’t really see why all the bad guys seemed to be always fighting amongst themselves as much against the law. I must say I like the more jovial evil doer Dan was in “Ride Clear…” Still Night Passage was filled with great character actors who you’ve seen many times in other places, Ellen Corby (Grandma Walton and a frequent guest star on “Hazel” [my favorite TV show]), Paul Fix who was sans teeth in this one, whenever Paul wants to play his “old coot” role out come the teeth. He looks much better and younger with his choppers in as he played the sheriff on The Rifleman. Also in this one was Harry Carey’s wife Olive Carey as Miss Vittles (great name), and 2 of the greatest TV fathers ever were both in Night Passage, Hugh Beaumont (Leave It To Beaver’s Dad) & Herbert Anderson (Dennis’ Dad on Dennis The Menace). Well I wouldn’t call Henry Mitchel one of TV’s greatest Dad’s but he was the Dad in another of my favorite shows, Dennis… I always wished my Dad could have been like Ward Cleaver instead of the yelling and hitting kind. The storyline goes like this, Jimmy & Audie are brothers and Jimmy is assigned to deliver a bankroll to some other railroad guys, or something, and Audie & Dan are part of the bad guy group that wants to steal the money. Jimmy tries to reform Audie and, well, I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t seen it yet. It was certainly a good western, but not as fun as Ride Clear. Happy Trails till next time.

I think NIGHT PASSAGE is a very good film and I thought the climax gunfight near the end was done very, very well. There may not be much need to mention this but have to tell this anecdote…In 1961 I was stationed at a Navy Facility adjacent to Vandenburg Air Force Base in Calif. about 150 miles north of LA. It has been so long now I forget if a buddy of mine had car trouble on a highway some place south of Vandenburg or was hitchhiking as we poor, carless service guys were prone to do in those days. Anyway, this gentleman comes along and gives my buddy a ride and it was Dan Duryea. If I remember correctly the inference by my friend is that Duryea live in the general area some place. So, of course, this indicates to me that he must have been a very nice man to be a celebrity and help some stranger on the highway. Does anyone know where he was living in his later years? This would have been a few years before he died. Thanks. (I am sure his soul his shining someplace right now in the Universe.)

Someone mentioned the Duryea film, BOUNTY KILLER. Just a heads up and maybe all you knowledgeable people know this. Anyway, about 4-5 years ago while looking for westerns to buy on Amazon I noticed that here was only one VHS copy of that title for sale and the asking price was 999. dollars. Now, I do not know if the seller made a typo or what…I was too inexperienced to ask. However, I wanted that movie and so watched and watched for another to come up for sale at a decent price. Perhaps 1-2 years later I did notice, finally two VHS were for sale and I bought one copy for less than $20 I think. Still not cheap, especially a VHS. Then, shortly thereafter I found another one for sale at a very cheap price…I forget where..the internet or a library sale or something. And, I check every once in a while and have not seen any for sale on Amazon. Just checked today and there are no copies for sale. Have not seen it broadcast on TV since then. My point..if you get a chance and want it better buy a copy fast if it comes up for sale. I could also ask you to campaign with TCM and Encore Western Channel to show it. Thanks. Moe

I had mentioned “Bounty Killer”. Last year I was looking for it and had your same Amazon type experience, then I was able to get a copy from a fellow collector. And within a month it suddenly was going to be shown on Antenna TV where I recorded it for myself. A “when it rains it pours” month for Bounty Killer after years of a drought. A really great movie filled with old Western stars and a great Dan performance, only trouble with the movie Buster Crabbe’s and Rod Cameron’s scenes are way too brief.